Zero Waste - How and Why

I find myself becoming more hippie every day. It was never a goal of mine, partially because there are aspects of the hippie lifestyle that I don't condone, but the granola, tree-hugging, natural-living life appeals to me greatly. This is true for several reasons. First, I am a steward of the earth, and I feel that responsibility strongly. Secondly, I love the art of keeping home, and that involves living more slowly, simply, and naturally - at least it does for me. Lastly, I believe it to be healthier and more beneficial for my family. First I adopted the practice of using natural cleaners and hygiene products, then minimalism, then my family went paper free. It seemed natural that a zero waste lifestyle would follow.

What is a zero waste lifestyle? Put simply, it is the practice of eliminating single-use products from your life and trying to limit your waste to infinitely recyclable or compostable items. For us, this meant getting a compost bin for our home, buying local products we can put in our own containers, and limiting the other things we buy to things in glass, metal, or paper packaging. I find it to be a fun process, and we're getting to know our area better as a result.

Because we're doing a no-spend, right now, we've decided to only purchase on a replacement basis, which is what most zero-wasters do anyway. We did make an exception for the composting bin. We've found a local place to get meat and dairy, another to get grains, and we're still looking for options for produce. I'm working through my list of things to replace items like shampoo and tinfoil. I'm deciding what we'll give up instead of finding an alternative or trying to make ourselves.

To me it's an exciting process. I think my husband finds it stressful, right now, though that will hopefully become less as we become used to the new routines. We've been doing it for a couple weeks, and in the past week have only take out one bag of trash. That's pretty good, considering we don't have our compost bin, yet, and are still getting through single-use products we had before this new venture started. I look forward to seeing how it simplifies and betters our home.

If you're interested in more information, you can check out this website. It includes links to videos, if you would prefer that kind of information.

My Wardrobe Discovery

Several weeks ago, I bought a dress to be my go-to formal-wear for church, weddings, funerals, and other similar events. I cringed as I bought it, because it cost $85 - a lot for our budget. 

When I received it, I tried it on and immediately loved it. It was comfortable - like cashmere - light and soft. It was my preferred length (to my ankles), with a top that made nursing easy but was still modest. I felt beautiful in it, my husband liked it, and it is "infinity sizing", which means I can wear it while pregnant and between/after babies. It's made of bamboo, which has a lot of benefits you don't get from cotton, and it's gentle on my ultra-sensitive skin. 

Pregnant with my first baby, I only wore dresses. Post-baby, none of the dresses I had worked for nursing, so I switched to skirts and shirts. I was frustrated by how quickly everything wore out, how all cotton seemed to be transparent to the point of immodesty, and I missed dresses. With my second pregnancy, the items I had made work no longer suited my growing belly, and I still needed to be able to nurse. 

Having found this dress, I'm excited to replace my skirts and shirts with more dresses of varying colours. It suits all my needs, is durable, and is wonderfully versatile. It's a perfect option for anyone wanting something modest, flattering, which will work for nursing, pregnancy, and just your everyday body. I encourage you to try one.

*I have not been requested to review this product, nor am I compensated in any way for raving about it. 

Circumcision: Why I Say Nay

Circumcision is a hot topic among new moms, these days - at least in America. Although I do not have a son, if and when I do, he will not be circumcised. If I lived just about anywhere but the states, people would say: "Well, of course! There's no reason to." In America, however, there is outright hostility. Here are some of the reasons parents in the states still circumcise:

Family Cloth: Why You Shouldn't Be Squeamish

By now you probably know how much I enjoy frugality. It shows in my home, my eating style, my wardrobe, and now it's showing in my bathroom.

Family cloth. Do you know what it is? In case you don't: family cloth is what you use instead of toilet paper. It it reusable, washable cloth. I made ours out of the flannel receiving blankets we had used for our little one's home birth. I cut them into squares and sewed them - 192, in all. They look pretty and feel absolutely luxurious.

DIY Handwash

I remember once seeing an interview with a doctor where he stated that professionals in his hospital were required to wash their hands a ridiculous number of times. When they walk into a room, when they're leaving, right after drawing blood, etc. I'm not sure an actual number is that helpful but guidelines outlining when you're most likely to have come into contact with infectious contagions.

That being said, I worked in two settings, before I became a stay-at-home-mom, where washing my hands frequently was a requirement. I hated it - mostly because my hands would get so dry.

All-Natural Living - How's it Going?

A month ago, I made the decision to go all-natural and make my own hygiene and cleaning products. There have been a few bumps, a lot of nice surprises and changes, and overall, myself and my husband are loving it. Here are a few things we experiences that I thought would be worth sharing.

Deodorant: this was going well. For three weeks, there weren't any problems. I figured I was safe, but then my underarms turned really red. A couple days after I noticed this, when I was showering, skin came off in clumps. I'm serious. I did more research and read that baking soda can be too irritating for some people. I remembered reading this before, but I've never had sensitive skin, so I didn't think it would be a problem. I changed it up and now am using deodorant made up of equal parts cornstarch and coconut oil, with 2-3 drops of essential oil per 1/2 cup. I'll update this post when I've been using it awhile so you know how that's going.

It's also good to note that you should store your deodorant in a dark, cool place. I forgot to tell my husband this, and his deodorant melted all over our dresser. Despite the fact that we ended up with a nicely polished dresser, it wasn't the ideal situation. Store properly (in your fridge, if you keep your home warm - because coconut oil liquidates at 76 F) and you shouldn't have this problem. Additionally, essential oils can lose their potency in sunlight, so you want to avoid that all well.

Why I'm Going All-Natural

I've never been one of those people who is super worried about toxins in cleaning supplies and body-care supplies. It's not that I don't care; it's more that I've grown up without worrying about it and am simply used to what I can buy at the store. After getting married, I remember reading books and looking through blogs filled with ideas to keep house and self clean with natural and organic products a person could make at home. I started compiling a list of what I would need and realized it would be incredibly expensive to start up the process, so I put it aside and essentially forgot about it.

This idea re surged when I was looking up a better way to clean my oven top. I could mix a tablespoon each of salt, baking soda, water, and elbow grease, and it was as clean as I could ever get it with 409. I was so pleased, I spent a day looking for various cleaners and body-care products. I wanted to be able to buy limited ingredients for a variety of products.